Forever Alone // Carl Grimes (The Walking Dead)

Chapter 44

"Say goodbye."

Is this how I die? Somehow it's not surprising. I couldn't see Daryl in my perpetual vision. I silently prayed that Carl didn't stray far from the house. I gulped in a deep breath when the gun clicked and the bullet was readied. It felt like minutes had passed but in acctual fact it was only seconds.

"Goodbye." As soon as the voice was registered in my head a bullet was fired and the cool metal of the gun dropped from my head. Adam's lifeless body dropped to the ground behind me and I let out a long exaggerated breath I didn't know I was holding.

I felt myself go weak at the knees but Carl caught me before I could waver. He gently stroked the hair flowing down my back and I caught my breath.
"Thank you so much. I-I thought I was going to die."

"I wouldn't let that happen." He reassured and held me until he was sure I wouldn't collapse or something.

"W-We need to go." I composed myself, sucking in some much needed breaths. Carl nodded and grabbed my forearm, leading me along the houses. The gunshots seemed to die down slightly.

"It's overrun," Carl observed, pointing at the metal gate surrounded by Walkers attracted by the noise. "We have to climb the fences."

I caught Daryl's eye and motioned to the fences beside him. He nodded and pulled Kirsty from behind the bushes. If we did this with as little noise as possible we could survive without attracting Walkers. Carl gave me a boost and I grabbed onto one of the metal bars that seemed to create a widely spaced ladder upward.

Once I was over I pulled out my handgun and scouted the area for Walkers. I could see some in the distance which would be along the gates but picking them off would only create noise. Kirsty was the next to drop down. I pulled her to her feet and she gave me a warm smile. Carl dropped next, followed by Daryl and his crossbow.

"Where do we go now?" Kirsty asked absently and glaced around the tree surrounded meadow.

"I have no idea." I smiled. For once, I was happy to not have a plan or goal. We would find the rest of the group soon and we could find somewhere safe. Instead of the dooming negativity weighing on my mind I listened to the long lost side of my brain that was optimistic.

"We should find a house or something, to lay low for awhile." Daryl offered, loading his crossbow.

With that said we stepped into the meadow that I found myself in not weeks ago. It's funny how things change so quickly for good and for bad. I was at my lowest but I did what I thought I couldn't do, I fixed myself. I'll never stop fighting, because I finally have something to fight for.

-

"Do you see that?" Kirsty squealed in excitement at the building that appeared from behind the rows of trees.

Daryl and Carl both ran ahead into the house, with their weapons in hand. Minutes later Daryl emerged claiming that it was clear which immediatly lifted my spirits.

"Look what I found," Carl chuckled happily when he finally emerged from the brick house bearing some cans of much needed foods. I would have hated to see so much beans under normal circumstances, but it's so much different now.

Kirsty and I both stepped into the house with a smile. She followed Daryl into the kitchen while I opted for the sitting room. I immediatly saw the old rickedy piano in the corner and smiled again. It brought me back to the life I used to have. I brushed the thin layer of dust from the ivory keys and sat down on the cushy chair. My remembered music was limited so I let myself get taken into the first thing I could think of.

Loving can hurt
Loving can hurt sometimes
But it's the only thing
That I know

And when it gets hard
You know it can get hard sometimes
It is the only thing that makes us feel alive